Salvo (2013) User Reviews

Very long, near wordless drama of existential self-discovery

[gradyharp · 7/10 · 20 December 2014]

SALVO as written and directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza has won many awards. It is a lengthy (2 long hours) story (or view) of the life of a hit man and the reason it succeeds is the magnetic performance of Saleh Bakri ('The Band's Visit') who magnetizes the story with his penetrating gaze.

Salvo (Saleh Bakri) is a bodyguard and hit man for a Mafioso. After foiling an attack on his employer, Salvo hunts down the man who organized it – Renato - and encounters the man's blind sister, Rita (Sara Serraiocco). She causes Salvo to question himself and his existence. The camera focuses on close ups of Rita's face as she tries to disguise her fear by singing. Salvo performs the murder of Renato off screen while we see Rita's reaction. Salvo places his fingers over Rita's eyes and due to some sort of unexplained phenomena, cures her sight. She starts to see forms and shapes, but as the film goes on, her sight improves. Salvo buries Renato and keeps Rita in an empty factory for her security and the remainder of the film shows the transition of a solitary professional hit-man to a man who becomes vulnerable to human connection, offering an allegory with the inexplicable restoration of Rita's sight.

The film is in Italian, is long, dark and very atmospheric. Dialogue is scarce but well chosen. This is a mood piece with a message and well worth waiting it out to understand that message. Grady Harp, December 14

Far from a conventional thriller

[MOscarbradley · 7/10 · 20 June 2017]

It's certainly original. Name me another Mafioso hit-man movie that has at its centre a blind heroine whose traumatic experience at the hands of a killer seems to reverse the effects of her blindness. If we are in the territory of miraculous cures Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza's movie never stresses the fact but proceeds to take us down roads we may not be used to. A mostly silent Saleh Bakri is Salvo who, on a job to kill the man who has set him up, encounters the victim's blind sister, Rita, and rather than kill her takes her along for the ride. However, it would appear the shock has restored Rita's sight, at least partially, which seems as devastating to her as being kidnapped by a hit-man. Sara Serraiocco is excellent as Rita and Bakri is highly effective in the title role, particularly in view of the fact that he hardly ever opens his mouth.

Even leaving aside the blind girl scenario, "Salvo" is unusual in other ways. Salvo is fundamentally an existentialist character who hides away from the world and is waited on hand and foot. His encounter with Rita opens his eyes as much as it does hers, awakening in him a tenderness he may not have realized was there. It's also a film that takes its time. Salvo and Rita are often the only characters we see and the conventional thrills of the Mafioso movie are conspicuously absent. Nor is it a conventional love story; the relationship that develops between captor and captive doesn't go along conventional lines and, like much else in the picture, is mostly conducted in silence and in darkness. Like I said, it's certainly original.

Art House Cinema Meets Action/Gangster Genre (slight spoilers)

[PoppyTransfusion · 7/10 · 21 October 2013]

Salvo is an enforcer and hit-man for a local mafioso known simply as 'Boss'. Following an attempt to ambush and murder Boss, Salvo hunts down the perpetrator, a local criminal rival, and kills him. Unfortunately the perpetrator, Renato, has a sight-impaired sister, Rita, who witnesses her brother's death. Rather than kill Rita Salvo takes her hostage and hides her in a disused quarry, which is the burial site for Boss's multiple victims.

What follows is a slow and intense process by which we see Salvo, an inscrutable individual of few words, redeem himself. His redemption is accompanied by Rita regaining her sight, in a way that is not made clear and felt unsatisfactory to me. Nonetheless there was sufficient integrity in the film that I accepted this change, which feeds the theme of redemption.

The film is without incidental music/soundtrack and has lots of long shots with abstract visuals, especially where the intent is to recreate the world as Rita perceives it. This was very well done. The colour palette is mostly blue/grey/black with bursts of white. All these choices create a brooding and reflective mood. They evoke well how Salvo and Rita might feel in their situations and predicaments. There are moments of quiet humour too though these serve to underline the intense concentration of the film rather than disrupt it.

Led by Saleh Bakri the minimal cast were superb. The actress who plays Rita was most effective as a blind/sight-impaired character. The scene where Bakri as Salvo does a reconnoitre of Renato's house while simultaneously avoiding and stalking Rita was superb. Rita's slow realisation that she is not alone in the house and in danger was so well conveyed by the actress, Sara Serraiocco. This was my favourite scene closely followed by the final one, about which I will say no more.

The plot suggests one type of film but in actuality it is an independent art house product. Insular and focused on character development where mood and lighting are more prevalent than words and as significant. It is slow, detailed and demands a type of attention from the viewer not required by most action films.

An Italian 'Leon'!

[johnnymurphy15 · 6/10 · 2 April 2014]

Italian gangsters have been portrayed frequently over the many years of cinema, but thankfully this film explores the genre a little differently. In my opinion, it does not entirely work, but is interesting none the less.

The film is centred around a hit-man named Salvo. We see mainly the close up of his eyes as he drives a car. He seems attentive, observant, alert and focused on his job at hand. After a failed attempt on his bosses life, Salvo tracks down the man responsible and manages to extract the name of the man who organized the hit before he executes him. This name is Renato. When Salvo goes to Renato's house for what is supposed to be a routine assassination, he encounters Renato's sister Rita, a blind woman he takes pity on. In an extended thrilling scene, Salvo follows Rita around the house as she starts to sense his presence. We see a close up of Rita's face as she tries to disguise her fear by singing. Salvo performs the murder of Renato off screen while we see Rita's reaction. Salvo considers executing Rita too, but instead places his fingers over her eyes and due to some sort of unexplained phenomena, cures her sight. She starts to see forms and shapes, but as the film goes on, her sight improves.

As Salvo buries Renato, Salvo keeps Rita in a disused factory out of town to keep her safe. Meanwhile, the film takes a similar direction to the film 'Leon' and observes his changing behaviour from lone professional to a man who wants more human connection. He starts to change his habits, mainly when it comes to meal times as he tries to eat with his lodgers rather than eat alone in his room. The film does crawl at a very slow pace and is relatively dialogue free, but it does make it up with atmosphere. The relationship with him and Rita evolves as the film goes on and becomes rather compelling. The final confrontation is rather thrilling and play's out like a Spaghetti Western rather than the standard gangster genre with the dusty and windy setting.

There is a definitely a mythical religious allegory played out here with the unexplained divine intervention in relation to Rita's sight being restored. For she was blind now she can see. This is true in Salvo's case as he starts to question his existence. It is rather compelling viewing, with some tense scenes and good performances. Saleh Bakri is very subtle as the title character in an existential crisis and Sara Serraiocco is fantastic as Rita. She manages to steal the show here, and I was looking forward to whenever she was on screen again. Admittedly, it is rather long and boring in parts, but certainly an interesting take on what is becoming a rather repetitive and stagnant genre.

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Disappointing

[Red_Identity · 31 December 2014]

Whenever I read the words "arthouse action", I immediately think of Drive, I can't help it. It's an instinct. So yeah, sort of expect that same sort of atmosphere, and while the mood and pacing here is like that in a way, it's just not all that interesting. Inherently it is, the cinematography is quite good, as is the editing. The lead actor seems a bit empty, and not in the way that it worked in Drive. There could've perhaps been more there, seeing as how that's the way I really saw it not working. Still, there were some moments of inspired brilliance, the film wasn't always uninteresting, and it was nicely composed. by the end of it, I actually kind of liked it for some reason, and it's why I'm giving it more positive than negative despite my review not sounding like that at all

Dialogue challenged movie, neither a drama nor a love story. Well shot and acted. Intriguing plot only used halfway. Questions about motives driving the two main characters

[JvH48 · 6/10 · 10 October 2013]

I saw this film at the Ghent (Belgium) film festival 2013, where it was selected for the Global Cinema section. The synopsis on the festival website left a lot to outguess, and confined itself to throwing names and mentioning the praises it received in Cannes and from professional reviewers. So I went in blank, not knowing what to expect.

The opening action scene sets out the daily life of our main character, Salvo, who is a professional hit man and seemingly does nothing else. We see him continuously alert and prepared for anything. When ambushed he chases one of the attackers against fraternally advice to let it go, with the express purpose to learn who is behind the attack. He finds out and immediately heads to his house.

That is where he meets Rita, our second main character, who is the blind sister of the man behind the ambush. In sharp contract with the previous action scenes, this in-house scene drags on much too long. We see Salvo and Rita both moving around in the same house. Rita plays music all day long, and hence does not hear him wandering around. Salvo on the other hand, silently waits for his target at first, and after killing him continues with exploring the house out of professional habit on the lookout for adversaries. Given many stairs and rooms, it takes some time before they notice each others presence. Salvo needs some time to grasp the notion that Rita is blind and poses no immediate danger. At the same time we witness through her eyes some light flashes when he touches her on the head, while reading between the lines giving us a hint that her blindness is about to be cured.

His underlying reasons not to kill her but to take her along, puzzle me and we are left unclear about it even after the closing titles. There were no sexual intentions that we are aware of. And having a woman to take care of, seems a stumbling block in his line of work. Salvo leaves Rita behind in a deserted building for several days without his real purpose becoming much clearer. She explores her confined quarters, at first by groping around as she was used to do when totally blind. At a later stage, we see that she made attempts to cover the windows with material lying around, while it (we assume) hurts her eyes that need time to adjust.

Back at home, Salvo seems restless and very unlike the focused man he usually is. The man and woman (a couple?) waiting on him, apparently his servants, are as confused as we are. Salvo arranges for food, drives to the place he imprisoned her, and wants Rita to eat it together, but she refuses at his first attempt. We clearly see that her earlier ways of moving around, gets more and more like someone really able to see, in no danger of stumbling over furniture and other objects around. Still unexplained is the sudden cure of her blindness, seemingly starting when Salvo touched her the first time.

In one of the final scenes his mafia boss arrives and demands that he kills Rita and returns for work. Salvo and Rita escape together, after a shootout, while she supports him because of a seriously looking shot wound. It cannot be construed as a spoiler that no happy end can come out of this situation.

All in all, it is neither the drama nor the love story that I anticipated when reading the synopsis on the festival website. All professional reviewers who saw this film in Cannes, applauded it without exception or reservations, but I don't get it. When leaving the theater I scored a 3 out of 5 (average) for the audience award. There is not much dialogue to admire, but apart from that it is perfectly acted. I have some doubts about Rita's facial expressions in the house where they originally met, which I felt as being exaggerated and overdoing it to make an impression on the audience. But I assume this to be natural for someone blind (I also assume it being based on expert advice), which behavior disappeared when her eyes started working. Finally, the narrative and particularly the direction in which the story is heading, is left unclear for us from beginning to end. I think this plot could have been used more effectively, given the ingredients available, but it is easy for me to say.

Slow moving, dialog free

[citizenralph · 1/10 · 10 January 2014]

Saw this at Palm Springs Film Festival, Jan '14. Had high expectations that this would meet the film description. It opened with some action, but then got very plodding as the main character first met the female lead. I suppose this was artsy or character development stuff, but for me, it was just slow.

The movie did not lead me to care emotionally about either main character.

At our screening the film ended and the audience *moaned*. Never heard such a reaction at a film festival, where the movies are supposed to be the best of the best.

Avoid this one.

European art at its best

[Tuco-23 · 8/10 · 4 October 2013]

Salvo synopsis may seem like a tear jerker melodrama, but it isn't. This is the European art film at its best. Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samourai may come to your minds, but even that is like blockbuster in comparison with Salvo. Long shots, minimum of words, no music - that is Salvo. Salvo Mancuso. He is defined by his acts, not his words. The plot is revealed slowly and if you are right kind of spectator, you will enjoy calm atmosphere of this movie. There are some great sequences I won't spoil. This is definitely that kind of film where directors precisely thanked about each shot. This is sad film about lonely people who "live their lives like a rats" (a sentence one of the character says in the movie). If you want to be enjoyed, look somewhere else. if you like film noir, slow films and films where you see the creators know their work with images and sound, this might be for you.

For an excellent movie, dialogue is not a must

[rdoliva · 10/10 · 19 July 2014]

I knew i wanted to have it the moment it ended. I watched this movie almost a year ago and was patiently waiting for it to come out on DVD.

An excellent movie that through great acting, photography and story it allows one to feel the streets, the fear, the adrenaline, the suspense and an unexpected love of life for someone that lives in epicenter of the mafia world.

It certainly does not fit the classic Hollywood movie mold and happy / hopeful ending. If this is what you're looking for you better skip this movie. This is a more thoughtful and intuitive movie that requires you to have the same insight as when you're watching an old allegoric painting. In this sense, i feel appreciation for this movie demands quite a lot from the spectator, but richly rewards him. This is the kind of movie i love.

Acting from Bakri and Serraiocco is excellent. I enjoyed very much the way Grassadonia and Piazza tell this story.

Italian cinema has produced some excellent movies recently and i think they present a superb alternative to the mainstream Hollywood products. Directors like Sorrentino and Giordana, together with actors like Favino, Servillo, Stuart and Placido amongst others have created top quality movies.

Killer bodyguard discovers his humanity

[maurice_yacowar · 9/10 · 5 January 2014]

Salvo, written and directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, is a harsh, sombre drama of existential self-discovery. In its long wordless scenes and its omission of any music not sourced in the scene it's bleak, gripping, a work of atmosphere rather than articulated point. This is the artsiest Noir I can remember.

One key lies in the hero's name. Salvo (Saleh Bakri) is a round of ammunition, a tool or instrument, but he turns into a responsible human individual when he transcends his role as bodyguard and hit man. As in the Camusian ethic, the muscular enigma has no self other than what we infer from his action.

The film's first two tours de force establish the hero's potential development. The first is his defence of his boss against another gangster's attack. That violent action is followed by the long suspenseful scene in the assailant boss's house, where Salvo haunts the enemy's blind sister Rita (Sara Serraiocco). Ironically, the blind girl can still count out money to allot as payouts.

As Rita unwittingly softens Salvo he brings his howling dog in from the outside and declines his solitary formal meals to join his dry-cleaner/landlord over tins of tuna in the kitchen. He leaves his room to sleep on his paid hosts' sofa. He beats up a colleague for disdaining the radio music Salvo associates with Rita. Ultimately he dies to give her a new life.

When Rita realizes Salvo's sacrifice for her, her lost sight apparently returns. Her eyes move together and her tics are gone. Here realism gives way to theme. His new insight and broader vision than his own survival seem to spread to her. It doesn't make sense neurologically but it does as presiding metaphor. For more see www.yacowar.blogspot.com.

Noir Like Never Before

[TheCinemaMan · 8/10 · 12 December 2015]

Now here is a slow moving movie with heart offering a distinctly creative turn in the noire genre. It's also a risk taker in that it may be a tough sell to believe a ruthless tough guy could develop a "soft side" and likewise that a victim could turn to love same said ruthless tough guy. It's a movie that requires a bit of thought to connect the dots and see whether you are convinced that the filmmaker succeeded in this ambitious and complex endeavor. While I admit I'm have some doubts about that, especially the victim turned lover side, it was an enjoyable watch in large part because one is led along by suspense that never culminates in the traditional way. Very much worth a watch unless you are expecting "traditional" mafia movie treatment.

Italian Samourai

[searchanddestroy-1 · 9/10 · 8 May 2022]

The influence is obviousfor this film, very well made but also suffering from some unnecessary lengths. The main actor is maybe not Alain Delon but quite good enough to hold the comparison. Lonely hired killer who happens to face existential questions, a topic already seen many times before, even in Asian crime films, but rarely in European ones. Italy is a country, great provider of mafia topics, - I wonder why ; ha ha ha - so it is normal that Italy made this one, unlike Spain, Germany or Norway. In the USA, of course there were tons of them all over the years, especially TV products, or direct to DVDs stuff. No, this one is a good film, not that surprising though, with expected results at the end, but a good Italian crime feature.